Is Your Website Journalist-Friendly?

Press coverage is still one of the best tools available for promoting your brand. It’s free, has the ability to reach a wide audience, and consumers trust it. Getting profiled in a magazine piece or even on a decent-sized blog can provide all sorts of benefits for your brand.

That’s why it’s so important to make sure that your website is journalist-friendly. When designing your website, you probably thought quite a bit about your customers, and that’s a good thing. But you also need to make sure it offers the things a journalist would want to see if one were to be researching your company.

What are the things journalists look for on company websites?

About Us information—Your About Us page should provide information and links to all relevant company information that a journalist would care about. This includes things like the history of your company, bios of key executives, any credentials/awards you’ve earned, etc. This is the information journalists use to provide background details in their stories.

Press coverage—Post any press releases, links to stories, and videos of any media coverage you’ve earned on this page. Again, this is information reporters will use to gain more information about your company.

Contact information—Make sure your contact information is easy to find on your website. If you have someone who specifically handles all media relations, specify that individual’s name, email address, and phone number.

Ways to connect through social media—Journalists have really taken to social media, particularly Twitter. If you’re active in social media, make sure to include these links on your website. Having a blog is also a good idea, as journalists will often browse through these to get inside information directly from the company.